Long Island

Fall is in full swing with cooler temperatures, falling leaves, and fun family festivals across the Island. Long Island is known for it's festival culture and there's no better time than Fall to enjoy it. This weekend is chock full of Fall festivals from traditional Fall apple harvest festivals to music festivals to the famous Pirate festival. We've gathered up our picks for the can't miss festivals, each of them reflecting a different flavor of Long Island life, and all of them great for kids:

So many families move to Long Island for the amenities the Island has to offer: parks, great schools, a backyard! It shouldn't be a surprise that there is a growing crop of terrific resources for our kids sprouting up either.  Rare outside of large cultural meccas like NYC, there are several ballet studios on Long Island and many of the schools have been founded or are being run by professional dancers who too retreated from New York City to Long Island with their own families, and their programs and studios reflect their love of the profession and the student. Here are a few of the most notable:

The sun might be taking the weekend off, but that doesn't mean you have to. There are plenty great things to do this weekend on Long Island with your kids from one end of it to the other, and we've got three of the best to tell you about:

The weatherman is calling for no end to this heat wave, and Hurricane Bill is getting in the way of you spending one of the last Summer weekends at the beach. No worries-we've got a list below of some of best events happening this weekend on Long Island for families, no beach necessary. 

With the days getting shorter, there is a hint in the air that Summer is starting to wind down. Take advantage of these last few weeks by getting outside this weekend and enjoying some of the great events being offered across the Island this weekend- 

All of a sudden it seems like Summer is starting to wind down-but wait! This weekend, Long Island offers some of the best ways to get out and enjoy Summer Days, celebrations, and, of course, our beaches! Check out some of our recommendations for things to do with your kids this weekend on the Island-

National Lighthouse Day - Did you know that Friday is National Lighthouse Day? Well, no where can one celebrate lighthouses like we can on Long Island. And at the Fire Island Lighthouse at Robert Moses Beach, there is a special celebration planned. Actress and storyteller Vivian Farrell will present her book  "Robert's Tall Friend: A Story of the Fire Island Lighthouse" to an audience of children an their families at the lighthouse, and afterwards you can enjoy a tour of the famous lighthouse for a reduced rate of just $5. It isn't everyday that you can take your kids to the place they can read about in a book, right? And, depending on what show you catch, there should be plenty of time to play on the beach afterward. 

Fire Island Lighthouse

11am and 3pm

Friday, August 7

East of Field 5 

Robert Moses State Park

The Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York - Another boat race? Not quite-this weekend long festival is a celebration of culture and ethnic tradition. A regatta of sorts, the festival includes traditional Chinese boat races, but also has plenty of other exciting activities, like Lion dancers, dragon dancing, and king fu performances. And, brought especially for kids, a balloon twister and face painter will be on hand as well. Originated in a cool historical tale, dragon boat races are fun and exciting to watch, and the events surrounding the race make the festival a perfect family outing. Check out the website for an event schedule and more info!

Flushing Meadows State Park

9am-5pm

Saturday, August 8-Sunday August 9

Smith Point County Park Sandcastle Contest - The weather for Saturday could be questionable, but with the sunshine back in the forecast for Sunday, you might want to hit the beach. A trip to Fire Island and hitting a cool Sandcastle contest sounds great to us, and might be the perfect way to end the weekend. Smith Point County Park is one of the greatest beaches on Fire Island, and, as a mom, I might think it is because the lifeguards there are some of the best in the country. But it is really beautiful and it offers alot of great amenities as well. This Sunday, they are holding the Annual Sandcastle Building Contest at 9am on the beach. It is really fun and it draws lots of talent and creativity. If you can, stay all day and stop in at The Beach Hut for dinner. There's great grown up food, but the kids will love their basket menu. PS-They sponser the sandcastle contest and depending on your schedule they offer great breakfast as well. 

Smith Point County Park

9am

Sunday, August 9

Shirley, Fire Island

Lots of things to do with kids this weekend on Long Island. This weekend's events include a great Summer Festival, fun outdoor concerts for kids with Brady Rymer or David Cassidy, or spending the day at an Historical Baseball Tournament. Have a great weekend!

Seems like it is Summer Festival Season-this weekend Long Island offers plenty more than great beaches; from one of the best Greek festivals to Music festivals to festivals for kids, here are some of our recommendations for the best festivals to check out this weekend on Long Island. 

I don't know about you, but this summer we've pared back on camps and vacations in an effort not to spend money we don't have. But our loss is your gain because, instead, what we're going to be doing this summer is exploring New York City and all the fun stuff we don't always have time to do during the school year.

To get organized for a full summer of fun NYC style (and 62 scarily empty days), I planned out an activity for just about every single day in July and August, 'cause, as my son would say, "that's what me do."

The following list is not comprehensive. These are the things I'm looking forward to doing this summer. These are the coolest family events coming up this summer, plus some great places I've just been meaning to get to. And most of them are free.

The Hamptons isn't all that, hang with me right here in New York. It's gonna be a blast (and don't forget to check out our Summer Activity Guide for even more great things to do with kids in NYC this summer).  I hope to see you there.

50 Things to Do This Summer With Kids in New York City:

Around my house, these few weeks before my kids’ Summer camps officially start can be tough. The Summer weather seems to have arrived finally and the kids are anxious to take advantage of it. With plenty of beach days ahead, I wanted to do something special to celebrate today being the first official “day I don’t have to go to school” this Summer.  So, we  headed to Bayville this afternoon and hit the best mini-amusement park on Long Island-the  Bayville Adventure Park. 

For young kids, really, nothing could be better. First of all, there are lots of parking spaces right up front or just across the street, and you don’t even have to take a train to get into the park, like you do at Disneyland or those other big amusement parks. There is just enough activities to keep them from getting bored, but also the right amount to squeeze into the average young child’s visit without missing any (which I’d say is a few hours).